Evans History

Evans, Colorado, was named in honor of Colorado’s second territorial governor, John Evans. John Evans was a physician, real estate investor, founder of universities, railroad builder, and politician. In 1862, President Abraham Lincoln offered him the territorial governorship of Colorado; by 1865, the legislature chose him as a senator.

Before his death on July 3, 1897, Dr. Evans left a lasting mark on the State of Colorado when he found that Denver was not going to be a part of the Transcontinental Railroad. He was very instrumental in obtaining a land grant and starting construction of the Denver Pacific Railroad linking Denver with the Transcontinental Railroad in Cheyenne, Wyoming.

On November 22, 1869, our settlement midway between Denver and Cheyenne was the first town to be platted and filed with the clerk of Weld County. Evans also marks the site of the completion of the railroad.

Due to the declining economy of a railroad boomtown, the early 1900s brought hardships to Evans. As a result, the town’s economic base shifted to agriculture. This shift helped Evans endure the Great Depression that crippled many small towns across the United States. Agriculture also saw Evans through the rapidly rising inflationary times of the 1960s and ‘70s.